An eleventh-hour compromise to allow the state to hire private attorneys on contingency fee contracts for Gulf of Mexico oil spill litigation died Monday when the annual legislative session ended without the House taking up the measure.

The bill's sponsor accused Reps. Tim Burns, left, and Jim Tucker of deliberately running out the clock on a compromise.

The 6 p.m. mandatory end prompted celebratory hugs from business lobbyists who framed Senate Bill 731 as a sop to plaintiffs attorneys and a prelude to so-called predatory lawsuits. Aides to Attorney General Buddy Caldwell and lobbyists for the plaintiffs bar, meanwhile, huddled in disgust, while Senate President Joel Chaisson II, the bill's sponsor, assumed the Senate podium to excoriate the House leadership and demand that Gov. Bobby Jindal call a special session to address the matter.

"This is a sad day in the state of Louisiana when two members, because of their delay and their subservience to big oil and big business, can keep the House from even having the opportunity to vote, Chaisson said, accusing House Speaker Jim Tucker and Commerce Committee Chairman Tim Burns of deliberately running out the clock on a compromise between versions the two chambers passed earlier in the session.

Louisiana and Wisconsin are the only two states that bar their attorneys general from hiring outside lawyers on contingency contracts, the most common form of payment for plaintiffs attorneys, as opposed to defense firms that usually work on hourly billing.

The reconciled plan would have allowed Caldwell to hire outside counsel only for claims stemming from the ongoing Gulf of Mexico oil spill, with attorneys' fee capped at $100 million. The initial Senate version was not limited to oil spill litigation and set a sliding scale for fees, with no upper limit. The House had endorsed limiting the bill to the current oil spill, with a maximum $50 million take for lawyers, with the fee further limited to $1,000 per-hour worked by individual attorneys. The Senate voted 25-13 for the compromise with less than 15 minutes to spare in the session.

Chaisson, D-Destrehan, said the proposal was the session's most important bill other than the state's $26 billion operating budget. He said the state would be at a disadvantage with other coastal states seeking damages from oil giant BP and others responsible for the spill.

Speaking on the floor after the House failed to act, Chaisson addressed Jindal, who was not in the chamber and has spent most of the session away from the Capitol dealing with oil spill matters: "Governor, you can go down to the coast every day, but if you don't solve this issue, you haven't done anything."

Minutes earlier, Chaisson had been in the House chamber in a clearly heated conversation with Tucker. Rep. Fred Mills, a St. Martinville Democrat who handled the bill in the lower chamber, was standing at the podium ready to present the compromise proposal when House Clerk Alfred "Butch" Speer announced the adjournment "sine die."

Jindal, who supported giving Caldwell limited authority to hire lawyers on contingency, said he was "disappointed" that lawmakers didn't get a bill to his desk. He did not bite on any mention of a special session. "It's too early to decide the next best move," he said. "The bottom line is that the attorney general needs to have the tools to protect the state's interest."

Tucker dismissed Chaisson's alarm and said the House has no interest in reconvening: "Given the president's behavior on the House floor, if they call (a special session) we'll probably adjourn sine die the same day."

The end-of-session fireworks followed a debate that resurrected an old rivalry between the business lobby and the plaintiffs bar and inflamed the budget-driven passions between the House and Senate. It also put Jindal, who typically aligns with the business community in tort law discussions, in a difficult political quandary given the public animus toward BP and its corporate partners.

Chaisson, who is a lawyer, argued throughout the session that Louisiana should not limit the quality of its legal team by not allowing Caldwell to hire private firms and attorneys on contingency. He spoke often of BP's "army of lawyers" he said are paid more than $1,000 per hour. Chuck McMains of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce led the business lobby in arguing that Caldwell can hire lawyers on hourly wage contracts, as he already has done to help his office with prelitigation court filings.

McMains disputed that his team was part of running out the clock. He said Chaisson stretched the debate trying to hold out for a bill with no cap on lawyers fees. Tucker said Chaisson set up the day's events by not submitting his first proposal until 2 p.m. "He tried to jam us, and we said no," Tucker said. "I have no regrets."